Snowmobiling

“The snow-scooter ride was special! The snow-scooters belonged to our colleagues. They asked if anyone wanted to go and we said we would love to!”

SNOWMOBILING IS PART OF EVERYDAY LIFE

Riding a snowmobile in Greenland has become a part of our local culture and we have adopted this means of transportation as a natural extension of how we move throughout the countryside.

For some of us, especially young people in the larger cities, it is a fulltime lifestyle with all the trappings of what that lifestyle encompasses relating to identity, fashion, the right lingo and the sporting aspect. But snowmobiling is far more than an important element of local youth culture; we use the snowmobile as everyday transport, in South Greenland with its culture of farming, during hunting in the mountains and out on the ocean ice. Some even use a snowmobile just to get to work.

During weekends family and friends will head out for tours in the mountains or go for a picnic at the local ski lift. If you keep an eye out for some of the groups of snowmobilers going out over some hill-side ridge, you will discover that it is often local people who are going out to a favorite hill side spot, camping for the day and using their snowmobile as a ski lift to get them to the top of the hill.

LONGING FOR WINTER

Every year around October a segment of the Greenlandic population begins to get restless. They go down into their basements rummaging for equipment; they look up at the sky and study the cloud formations, they share their joy when the first frosty days are upon us, and groups of young people get a dreamy expression in their eyes when the snow starts to fall.

Before you know it, there is enough snow for a snowmobile to race through town. The sound of this first pioneer of winter roars out on the street, signaling the beginning of a six month season, when the back country is conquered by locals inspired by the spirit of adventure. It is all about getting out into the mountains and enjoying the freedom that snowmobiling provides.

Snowmobiles are subject to the Greenlandic traffic laws and you must be 18 years of age to operate a snowmobile. However, a license is not required.

In certain towns, especially in Sisimiut and Kangerlussuaq, there are specific transport corridors where snowmobiles are permitted to drive. Several towns have designated areas where snowmobiles may be used without limitations, but beyond that, snowmobile traffic is regulated, making room for dog sledding and wild life.

HOT SPOTS FOR SNOW MOBILE TOURS IN GREENLAND

While snowmobiling is possible in most of Greenland during winter, there a few destinations, best described as hot spots, for snowmobiling that offer real adventure tours.

Sisimiut has the largest accessible back country, and the mountainous area offers the possibility for lengthy tours between Sisimiut and the airport settlement of Kangerlussuaq; easy family friendly excursions to local sightseeing points; tours climbing up to the top of 1400 meter tall glacier, and alpine skiing challenges for daredevils that defy the hold gravity has on humans.

In Tasiilaq, on the East Coast of Greenland the winter landscape opens to the opportunities for exploration of a wild and almost impassable terrain, flanked on one side by the icy Strait of Denmark towards the east, and on the other side, the Ice Cap towards the west. A local tour operator offers the possibility of combining alpine skiing in the back country with snowmobiling support.

On the island of Qeqertarsuaq, adjacent to Ilulissat, large valleys and flat-topped volcanic mountains create the framework for snowmobile safaris that may be combined with dogsled tours. Especially the tour to the top of the 800 meter tall Lyngmarks glacier provides a rewarding view of the entire Disko Bay area, in towards the ice fjord and going south along the west coast of Greenland.

In Tasiilaq, Travellodge organises snowmobile tours for skiers.

In Qeqertarsuaq, Lyngmark Tours offers guided snowmobiling tours in the back country as well as up on the Lyngmarks glacier.

Snowmobiling 05.jpgHanging out with friends in the late afternoon sun in the backcountry is an integral part of the snowmobiling experience in GreenlandMads Pihl, Visit Greenland, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Mads is Visit Greenland's in-house adventure travel photographer, and he also works with market development, content development, and a wide array of projects supporting other initiatives in the company.

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Polar Bear Alert in South Greenland!

Several polar bears have been encountered close to inhabited areas in South Greenland in the past days. As a consequence, the local police are now prohibiting hiking in some areas in South Greenland for the time being.

If you have an upcoming holiday in South Greenland, it is suggested you get in contact with your tour provider for further inquiry.